Mt. Hood 50 Miler Recap: Recap and Lessons Learned
(Photo Credit: the wonderful photographers they have at Go Beyond Racing)
The Mt. Hood 50 Miler is done and dusted, and I’m here with the real talk—what went well, what didn’t, and what I’m taking into my next ultra adventure.
Course Description
The First Half — Miles 0 to 28
The race kicked off at 6 AM near Timothy Lake, with a cool mountain breeze and fresh legs. The first half surprised me by being less steep than expected, so I didn’t need the trekking poles much early on—lesson learned, those babies are for the back half. Its hard to know when to need them because if you look at the elevation profile, it doesn't look particularly obvious that I'd need them or not need them. Its one of those experience things you pick up when you run a course like this one.
I was rolling with a solid fueling routine, eating every 20 minutes like clockwork: my DIY Maurten-style gels paired with Nerds Clusters as my candy fuel. The watch reminders kept me honest. They totally worked too. Had I not received a watch alert every 20 minutes, I would not have timed my nutrition correctly.
Even though I was 75 minutes ahead of schedule by mile 14, I took a spill and slowed down a bit after mile 19.
By mile 28 I slowed a bit, but I reached the start line again right on schedule -- a whole hour ahead of cutoff. Hydration and electrolytes were in check thanks to Precision Hydration tabs. I told myself I just needed to go 22 more miles in the same amount of time to reach my goal. I figured something like 16-17 minutes were reasonable paces.
The Struggle Bus Comes — Mile 30 and beyond
The reality check came fast and hard. Fatigue crept in hard after mile 30. Suddenly, my legs felt like dead weight, and every step required mental elbow grease.
That’s when the trekking poles came out to play. They became my crutch and my lifeline for the second half, especially on the steeper sections as afternoon sun started punching me in the face.
Although my fueling stayed consistent on timing, I faltered in quantity and variety. Those Nerds Clusters? Delicious, sure, but only about 30–40 calories per handful and the artificial flavor got old fast. I was likely running a 200-calorie deficit per hour, which probably explained the crash. The deficit probably started in the early miles, but I didn't notice since I still had glycogen reserves in my body. I had access to Oreos, but they ended up too dry and sweet to help once I was overloaded on candy. I’m thinking next race I’ll switch to plain flour tortillas—stupid simple, savory, and easy to digest—with maybe some cooked vegan bacon for a salty twist.
At mile 39, at the Warm Springs aid station, I took my time recovering with ice, pickles, and potato chips. I had dropped back another thirty minutes, so now I'm only 30 minutes ahead of cutoff. I'm glad I built in that buffer because I was fighting to just stay on the course. After this aid station, they would not kick me off no matter how slow I went, so I was relieved.
The Final Push — Miles 39.2 to the finish line
The last 10 miles were an emotional rollercoaster. I leapfrogged with fellow runners, trading stories and oversharing our status, where we are hurting the most.
At this point, I was going through places in my mind -- was I the last person on the course? Is everyone annoyed and waiting for me? How much longer will I be? Am I going to be like those guys I see on youtube who are staggering to the end of the finish line and need to crawl to the end? Maybe cry as my wife and friends carried me into the finish? I certainly felt like I was going to be that guy! There were some points on the way back where I was struggling to maintain even a sub 30 minute mile pace. I was happy to be at 24 minute miles for stretches. Again, I wasn't necessarily in pain, but my legs absolutely did not want to move. It was an extreme amount of fatigue.
Around mile 47, I found a little burst of energy and was able to run for short bursts. And when I mean short bursts, I mean something like 100 meters at something like 11 minute mile pace before slowing down to 20+ minute miles. But you know what? That was enough to get me averaging less than 20 minutes/mile. I'll take it.
When I started hearing cowbells, I knew I was extremely close. My body knew too and I was able to pick up the pace significantly. I ran the final 0.25 miles with my wife cheering me in. That moment? Absolutely everything.
The race director addressed me by name and handed me my "medal" (it was a glass cup with the race's namesake), and I got to sit for the next 30 minutes or so cheering on other finishers come in. They were out there battling just as hard as I was so I have nothing but awe and respect. Much love to Go Beyond Racing for being a first class organization!
Lessons Learned and What’s Next
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Trekking Poles: MVP in the second half. Next time? Stuff them in my drop bag for early miles and save energy.
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Fueling: Timing was on point, but quantity and quality need work. A ~200-calorie/hour deficit is a recipe for bonk. Plain tortillas + vegan bacon are in the lab for testing!
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Training: More long runs practicing fuel and gear management. Ultras are a road trip. It doesn't matter if you're a Corolla or a Corvette. You aren't going far if you don't have any fuel. Success belongs to the driver with the best refueling plan.
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Gear: Apple Watch 7 with a power bank was a rebel success. Nerds Clusters remain a fun, but not solo, fuel option.
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Mental Game: The pain is chosen, the finish is earned. Trust your body, listen to it, and keep moving forward—even when it wants to stop.
Thanks for following along on this wild journey. More posts coming soon with deep dives into my DIY gel formula and training insights. Until then, keep running, keep listening to your body, and yes… keep those Nerds handy (maybe just fewer of them).
